ESA 2024 Highlights: flight of the Ariane 6

In 2024, ESA continued to drive Europe’s innovation and excellence in space, equipping the continent with advanced tools and knowledge to address global and local challenges. The year saw pioneering missions, cutting-edge satellites and the pivotal restoration of Europe’s independent access to space.

The first Ariane 6 launch was perhaps ‘the’ highlight of the year but it was only one of many achievements. We saw the last Vega launch and then the return to flight of Vega-C, the more powerful, upgraded version carrying Sentinel-1C.

Far away in our Solar System, the ESA/JAXA BepiColombo spacecraft performed two Mercury flybys in 2024, needed so that it can enter orbit around Mercury in 2026. Juice also performed a crucial gravity assist, this time becoming the first spacecraft to conduct a Moon-Earth double flyby on its way to Jupiter.

Twenty years after ESA’s Rosetta was launched and 10 years since its historic arrival at the comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, we launched another spacecraft to a small body, the Hera planetary defence mission to investigate asteroid Dimorphos.

2024 was an important year for Europe’s Galileo constellation which continued to expand with the launch of four new satellites and an updated Galileo ground system. The year also saw the launch of ESA’s Proba-3 mission: two precision formation-flying satellites forming a solar coronagraph to study the Sun’s faint corona.

In human spaceflight, Europe continues to contribute to science from the ISS as Andreas Mogensen’s Huginn mission continued into 2024. Andreas even met up in space with ESA project astronaut Marcus Wandt who was launched on his Muninn mission, making it the first time two Scandinavians were in space together.

Meanwhile the latest class of ESA astronauts completed basic training and graduated in April. Two of them, Sophie and Raphaël, were then assigned to long-duration missions to the ISS in 2026.

We made crucial steps for Europe in gaining access to the Moon: the inauguration of our LUNA facility with DLR, and the delivery of a third European Service Module for NASA’s Orion spacecraft as part of the Artemis programme.

Europe is also contributing to the international Lunar Gateway and developing and ESA lunar lander called Argonaut. These landers will rely on ESA Moonlight, the programme to establish Europe’s first dedicated satellite constellation for lunar communication and navigation.

As 2024 draws to a close, ESA’s achievements this year have reinforced Europe’s role in space. ESA’s journey continues to explore new frontiers, shaping the space landscape for generations to come.

Credits: ESA - European Space Agency

#ESA #2024Highlights #Space

[JJTheCardinal]

Thank you to everyone at esa for their hard work and
I'm so happy and proud of you for pushing forward the peaceful exploration of space for the benefit of all humans!

I hope one day I will be able to contribute to this effort as well and maybe I'll even be able to work at esa some day ^^

[photoo]

Cheers to all the achievements in 2024!

And best of luck with the missions in 2025

[DalHrusk]

ESA is arguably the best European project. Thanks to everyone involved!

[mariadaluzmoutinho]

Obrigado ESA, pelo conhecimento sabedor... que é o motor do mundo e que acompanho com muita curiosidade!!

[IsabellaIsabella-mctx]

Congratulations ESA your're great! Thanks so much. ❤❤❤

[lionellespagne]

Bravo et merci a la spaceteam de l'ESA ❤

[hirunbrine]

Im just a 15 year old and wow, this is amazing. i would really love to contribute to science when I grow up.

[gabrielmahoux]

Automatic subtitles have errors.
Can you add subtitles for partially deaf people, please?

And if you can add also translation, it will be great for those who don't speak English (like my 10 years old daughter).

[BP-zcom]

ESA celebrates the first launch of a massively delayed rocket, while SpaceX launches F9 more than 120 times in 2024 for a fraction of the cost per kg of payload. Stop celebrating and start serious work on reusability, or Europe will be left behind even further

[TonyNaggs]

I like ESA and the science you do, but this has the most condescending script and tone of voice I have ever encountered. 🙁

[venkybabu]

Stolen goods make sense. Even Microsoft is not spared. Otherwise how could they send something into space or orbit.

[apocalypserx]

Europe is diminishing. Three launches in a year(even include a test launch)…Dying industry, dying space enterprise…If Germany had won the war, what would it be like for now? 100 interplanetary launches a year? Moon? Mars?…..

[ariyan_devanand]

I have only seen so far 2 European Rockets lunch finally European doing some rockets